What a good book for Spooky Season!

Is the placement of that dust jacket making you uncomfortable? Because that's exactly what I was aiming for. And because this book has a way of keeping its reader in a constant state of discomfort and anxiety. A prime example of Stephen King. I picked ‘Rose Madder’ as my Spooky Season book because it was next in chronological order. Initially, I was hoping for some traditional horror and I must admit that I was a bit disappointed when I read the blurb - it seemed more thriller-y than horror; more ‘Misery’ than ‘Pet Sematary’.

Never. Mind. It’s got all the elements of traditional horror - dreams, madness, paranoia - plus the Stephen King effect. I know exactly what’s going to happen, but I’m still affected by the text. I’m so anxious for Rosie and I can’t wait to see what happens next. Although I’m afraid I already know. The best horror is the one in which mundane reality becomes blurry and the reader can’t tell what’s really there and what is just a figment of someone’s imagination/delusion/hallucination. I also love how horror plays with its readers. Such a complex genre.